VIOLET Lee Kray was the mother of some of the most notorious criminals in British history.
The mother of twins Ronnie and Reggie, as well as their older brother Charlie, she was an important figure in all of their lives. But who was Violet Lee Kray? What did she think of her children and how did she die?
Who was Violet Lee Kray?
Violet Lee Kray was the mother of twins Ronnie and Reggie Kray, as well as their older brother Charlie Kray.
She married her husband, Charles Kray Sr, in 1926, and gave birth to her first son, Charlie, in the same year.
A second child, also named Violet, was born in 1929, but died hours after birth.
Twins Ronnie and Reggie were born in 1933, the last children she gave birth to.
Charles Kray Sr went into hiding after refusing to take part in World war II, and Violet was left to take care of the three children.
What has Violet Lee Kray said about her children?
Violet was a devoted mother, and didn’t see the bad in her children.
When money was an issue, Violet sold her wedding ring in order to feed her three sons.
When did Violet Lee Kray die?
Violet Lee Kray died in 1982, the day before she would have turned 73. She died at her home in Shoreditch.
Kray had been suffering from cancer for some time before her death.
Did Ronnie and Reggie attend Violet Kray’s funeral?
Ronnie and Reggie Kray were allowed to attend her funeral under a Police escort.
The appearance at the funeral was the first time they been seen in public since receiving life sentences for murder in 1969.
Despite being under heavy Police supervision, the twins were not allowed to attend their mothers burial, which took place in Chingford, Essex.
The funeral was to be the last public appearance of the twins together, with Ronnie dying in 1995, and Reggie dying in 2000.
Their brother Charlie Kray also died in 2000.
